Graying Japan Passes a Milestone

An elderly man strolls Tokyo in November. Many elderly people live alone in the city as aging becomes a big issue through out the country.

Associated Press

Travel agents and theme park operators beware! A record percentage of Japanese is now eligible for senior discounts.

For the first time ever, one in four of Japan’s 127 million people is older than 65, according to statistics released Tuesday. The precise figure was 25.1%, as of Oct. 1.

The data suggest Japan still firmly leads the world in aging. As of 2012, when 24% of Japanese were older than 65, the nation’s two closest competitors in that category were Germany and Italy, with 21% each, according to the World Bank.

The figures released Tuesday included some other records. For example, only 12.9% of the population is under 15, the lowest percentage on record, while the number of people between 15 and 64 years old fell below 80 million for the first time in 32 years.

Some segments of the population grew, however: those living in and around Tokyo and foreigners.

Tokyo’s population grew 0.53 percentage point, while surrounding Saitama and Kanagawa prefectures each grew a little more than 0.1 percentage point in the year through October. That compared to a decline of 0.17 percentage point in the national population.

While the number of Japanese people may have fallen for a third straight year, the number of foreigners shot up by 37,000–the first rise on year since 2008–to 1.59 million.

About Japan Real Time

Japan Real Time is a newsy, concise guide to what works, what doesn’t and why in the one-time poster child for Asian development, as it struggles to keep pace with faster-growing neighbors while competing with Europe for Michelin-rated restaurants. Drawing on the expertise of The Wall Street Journal and Dow Jones Newswires, the site provides an inside track on business, politics and lifestyle in Japan as it comes to terms with being overtaken by China as the world’s second-biggest economy. You can contact the editors at japanrealtime@wsj.com